The Strategic Plan 2011-2016

Preface

fmi*igf is a national organization led by volunteers that operates as a network of chapters located in all provinces across Canada.  A national board and executive oversees the fmi*igf and facilitates and enables regular dialogue, coordination of efforts and sharing among all chapters.  There is a national office that supports the direction of the national and chapter boards of directors.

fmi*igf offers services to over 2,400 members and conducts seminars and learning events for members and non-members across the country.  Seminars focus on contemporary themes related to the financial management of public sector resources.  Members and seminar participants come from federal, provincial and municipal governments, as well as other organizations that are interested in financial management of public sector resources.

fmi*igf volunteers coordinate many local events, geared towards the specific needs and interest of local members as well as at least two national conferences/events.


Vision
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Excellence in public sector financial management

Mission
fmi*igf is the leading source in Canada for professional development in new and emerging trends, best practices and topical issues to public sector financial management stakeholders.

Values
Member-focused - Members are the lifeblood of fmi*igf. Planning and delivery of all programs and services involves a thorough and on-going consideration of their needs.

Sharing
- fmi*igf strives to continuously create opportunities for sharing of experiences, information and best practices among members and other public sector stakeholders.  Sharing leads to a strengthened membership and knowledgeable, well-informed and engaged members who contribute to excellence in the financial management of public sector resources.

Quality - We strive for the highest quality in programming and services to members. From information to members in the fmi*igf Journal, through to excellent speakers for events, quality is a constant driving force that guides decisions and progress.

Relevance - fmi*igf provides pertinent perspectives on the current challenges and best practices in public sector financial management. Relevance of programming is a paramount consideration in developing and delivering national and local events, so as to help ensure members are well informed on topical issues.

Strategic Plan

This strategic plan prescribes a framework for action for fmi*igf for the next five years. In consideration of the mission and vision of fmi*igf, there are four strategic priority areas that will guide activities over the coming years to ensure focus on what is important.

Within these four strategic priorities, eleven explicit strategic goals are articulated to clarify the strategy for fmi*igf over the next five years.
This strategic plan will be reviewed and updated each year so that it becomes, in a sense, “evergreen”.

The strategic plan will be supported by an annual operational plan that will define specific activities to be undertaken to support the attainment of these strategic priorities and goals.  It is important to emphasize that this strategic plan spans five years.  It is not expected that each year’s operational plan will deal fully with each of the strategic priorities/goals.  What is important is that progress be made each year so that the overall strategy is accomplished in that time frame.

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES

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Strategic Priority # 1

Strengthen and improve benefits to members so as to increase and engage fmi*igf membership.

Strategic Goal # 1.1 Strengthen, improve and communicate membership benefits so as to increase the number of fmi*igf members.

Strategic Goal # 1.2
Increase the diversity of membership in order for the fmi*igf to include the views of all levels of government and various levels of managers and employees involved in public sector financial management. 

Strategic Goal # 1.3Increase the extent and degree of engagement by members so that our membership is always ready to be involved in the management and operation of our organization.

Engaged members are essential to the success of fmi*igf. Without their active participation as volunteers, none of the National or Chapter activities would be possible. While demographic changes in some Chapters may actually result in a local decline in membership, this must be offset in other Chapters so that the organization grows and increases its penetration in the overall target population groups. With the increased emphasis and focus on effective financial management by all managers in all public sectors, the overall target population groups should be growing.

fmi*igf draws its membership primarily from the extremely large pool of federal, provincial, and municipal employees across Canada. While some of these have a direct impact on financial management it is clear that the pool of potential members is far beyond the scope of our current membership. Strategies to reach out to these potential members will strengthen the fmi*igf and also strengthen an understanding of best practices in this domain.

While fmi*igf has a broad membership, some demographics are under-represented. To maximize the effectiveness of our programming and to reflect a broad range of knowledge and experience it is important that the fmi*igf overall be more representative of a complete spectrum of the target audience.

Recruiting and engaging an increasing number and diversity of fmi*igf members requires an understanding of their needs, the designing and implementing of benefits and programs to respond to these needs as well as a clear communication of the benefits of an engaged fmi*igf membership. It also requires the organization to monitor and report on the size and level of engagement of its members.

How will we get there? How will we measure our success? Some opportunities:

  • Research the size and demographics of our target audiences and develop indicators to report regularly on our penetration rate.
  • Develop special programming/outreach targeted at the under-represented group.
  • Create a list of potential positions that can be filled by volunteers and recruit new members to be liaison officers, speakers, fmi*igf journal contributors etc.
  • Survey target audience expectations from fmi*igf membership and develop benefits that respond to these needs.
  • Develop enhanced programming open to members only (e.g. Web Seminars).
  • Clearly define and communicate the benefits of membership.
  • Investigate and implement alternative forms of membership (corporate; student; etc.).
  • Consider creating new chapters in large target areas as required.
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Strategic Priority # 2

Ensure that fmi*igf is recognized by its members and target audiences as the leading source in Canada for professional development and knowledge sharing in the field of public sector financial management.

Strategic Goal # 2.1Improve the quality, relevance, diversity and visibility of National programs including PD events, networking, the Journal and other information products.

Strategic Goal # 2.2
Increase the participation by our target audience at events through gaining an understanding of their needs and expectations.

While engaged members and volunteers are important to the continued development and operation of fmi*igf, achieving our vision and accomplishing our mission requires the organization to be recognized as the leading source for public sector financial management professional development. Achieving this will require the organization to continuously improve the quality, relevance and diversity of its programming. At the same time this enhanced programming needs to be better communicated to increase both recognition and participation by our target audience.

How will we get there? How will we measure our success? Some opportunities:

  • Measure and track attendance at PD Week, PSMW and chapter PD days.
  • Increase our understanding of the needs of our target audience through exit surveys of participants at our current events and surveys of those receiving our promotional and other material.
  • Research and pilot the use of alternate forms of programming (e.g. Webcasting).
  • Develop new or amended programming to meet the expressed needs of our target audiences.
  • Communicate the benefits of attendance at fmi*igf programs.
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Strategic Priority # 3

Promote the fmi*igf to public and private sector decision makers and information providers as the leading conduit of information and guidance to members and target audiences.

Strategic Goal # 3.1Clearly define and communicate who we are and what we have to offer.

Strategic Goal # 3.2Identify, establish and build relationships with key stakeholders at all levels of government within Canada and with potential International partners.

Strategic Goal # 3.3Continue to build and sustain partnerships with professional accounting bodies and other organizations with similar mandates.

Promoting the fmi*igf and being recognized by information providers and other decision makers is critical to achieving the fmi*igf vision. Without the providers' recognition and active support, it will not be possible to supply the content for fmi*igf national and local programming. Information providers must see fmi*igf as the conduit for them to reach their target audiences – specifically, those interested and particularly involved in all aspects of public sector financial management.

Achieving this level of recognition will require an understanding of the providers' needs and a clear definition and communication of fmi*igf and how it can play an enhanced role in achieving “Excellence in Public Sector Financial Management”. It will require the identification of key stakeholders and getting their buy-in to relationships that can meet both their and fmi*igf objectives. The organization will also need to build partnerships with professional accounting bodies and other organizations involved in providing professional development in our field or in closely related fields. This way, we can identify the gaps and introduce new and innovative programming to fill the gaps.

How will we get there? How will we measure our success? Some opportunities:

  • Develop an inventory of key stakeholders and an action plan to obtain their buy-in to using fmi*igf as an information conduit. Measure progress on the action plan.
  • Identify the key professional bodies and other organizations and develop a partnership development plan. Measure progress on this plan.
  • Diversify the use of invited speakers to continuously increase the pool of people using fmi*igf programs to disseminate their messages.
  • Do an exit interview with each speaker at each event to develop approaches to make their involvement more valuable for them.

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Strategic Priority # 4

Organize and manage the fmi*igf effectively and ensure open communications within the organization.

Strategic Goal # 4.1Maintain a policy framework that supports all aspects of fmi*igf operations and activities at both the National and Chapter level.

Strategic Goal # 4.2Support and enable the viability of Chapters and their activities.

Strategic Goal # 4.3Facilitate a neutral platform for dialogue and collaboration between all levels of the organization.

How will we get there? How will we measure our success? Some opportunities:

  • Develop a policy framework implementation plan to assign responsibility and timelines for each module within the framework. Monitor and report on progress to full completion.
  • Survey all Board members on their experience with the orientation program and develop recommended improvements.
  • Identify and prioritize new services that the National organization can provide to Chapters. Measure progress on implementation.
  • Develop an overall internal and external communications strategy for fmi*igf.